I love the Joseph Wambaugh books…
Spider Robinson’s Callahan stories (six books and counting). Some of the most atrocious puns ever posted on this board I first ran into from Spider.
Missy2U:
Great call, especially THE CHOIRBOYS, which is the CATCH-22 of cop novels:
“Yeah, this one got banged up a bit.”
Helmets and anteaters.
Two references that mean nothing to the man in the street, but will have a CHOIRBOYS reader rolling on the floor and gasping with laughter.
Good choice on BORED OF THE RINGS.
Anything by Terry Pratchett, but especially MORT, SMALL GODS, PYRAMIDS, and GUARDS, GUARDS.
Parts of GRAVITY’S RAINBOW (especially the British Candy Epsode) are absolutely hilarious.
The Fools Progress by Edward Abbey - alternately hilarious and depressing
Just add water, it makes it’s own sauce!
I also have to cast a vote for Dave Barry, but for my money “Dave Barry Slept Here” is his best.
I don’t recall if anyone mentioned Ambrose Bierce’s “The Devil’s Dictionary”. My copy cost one lone dollar, and it’s among the most valuable books I own. Look up “regalia”. heheheh…
Uke - Roscoe Rules and Dominick Scuzzi.
MaxT - I used to use the Bierce definition of abstainer as my sig line.
A lot of hilarious books and authors listed here. Headed off to Barnes & Noble now; time to run up the charge card.
“The problem with the world is that everyone is a few drinks behind.” - Humphrey Bogart
Unc - just reading the name sent me into a fit of laughter.
Oh, let’s not forget Spermwhale…
Oh, and the first few pages of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas are side-splittingly funny. The rest of the book isn’t bad, but after a while I started to get disturbed about the sheer amount of drugs that Hunter S. Thompson was ingesting, so it wasn’t quite as funny anymore.
Small World by David Lodge. (Although it’s funniest if you happen to be connected with an English department in some way.)
Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency
Anything by Gordon Korman (to whom I owe my new sig).
On registration day at taxidermy school
I distinctly saw the eyes of the stuffed moose
Move.
- Gavin Gunhold
Anything by Spalding Gray. Especially Gray’s Anatomy.
Pretty near everything by Pratchett, but more his later stuff (Am waiting muchly for Fifth Elephant.). Catch-22 is great. I’ve always been partial to Thurber as well.
>>Being Chaotic Evil means never having to say your sorry…unless the other guy is bigger than you.<<
—The dragon observes
My fave Pratchett is ‘Maskerade’. There’s something about it that just tickles me every time. You’d have to know who Frank Spencer is to really get the best joke, though.
I love the City Watch books too.
“Waheeey! ‘Duck!’ Get it?”
“Errr… No…”
“Duck! Sounds almost exactly like fu-”
Feet of Clay is my favorite pratchett…it might be saying something when I admit that my favorite character is Lord Vetinari, followed closely by Carrot, then the Librarian. (I do find myself thinking that Susan Sto Helit is hot…which worries me. 
)
>>Being Chaotic Evil means never having to say your sorry…unless the other guy is bigger than you.<<
—The dragon observes
I have to go with “Interesting Times” as my current favorite Pratchett. Narile, when is “Fifth Elephant” due? (please ignore the panting).
Ukelele Ike - I think it’s Modern Dutch and Lord Sidcup agrees.
The Crime Studio by Steve Aylett.
The funniest mayhem ever. I laughed so hard, I just cant describe it!!
Somebody stop me from laughing, or I’ll do meself an injury!!!
“The truth is uncontrovertible. Panic may resent it; ignorance may deride it; malice may destroy it, but there it is.”-Sir Winston Churchill
What? No one’s mentioned David Sedaris yet? Now I’ll admit I haven’t read too much by him but the guy is funny.
I don’t read many “funny” books but what I’m reading right now is “A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again” by David Foster Wallace. This guy is amazingly funny, and while I haven’t read anything else by him (yet) I definitely plan to.
“I’m just too much for human existence – I should be animated.”
–Wayne Knight
Adams’ Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Still the best Adams’novel. Didn’t like the other’s as much, though they were still pretty good.
Pratchett and Gaimen’s Good Omens – The last truly hilarious book I’ve read.
I would also like to add Woody Allen’s Getting Even – Fantastic. Best of all, it takes a certain amount of education to get many of the jokes. The perfect humor book for all us elitist snobs.
“It is impossible to experience one’s own death objectively and still carry a tune.” – Woody Allen from Getting Even
Another really funny book is Our Dumb Century. It’s a collection of newspaper front pages created by the people who bring you The Onion newspaper. It covers a hundred years and pokes fun at everything.
I agree - Susan Sto Helit is hot.
I can’t figure out how she went from unborn in Mort to about 20 in Soul Music, while few of the other characters have aged at all.
Ah well. When you’re Death’s granddaughter, I guess time has no meaning. Especially since she’s not biologically related to Death at all, yet still has inherited his abilities.
“Waheeey! ‘Duck!’ Get it?”
“Errr… No…”
“Duck! Sounds almost exactly like fu-”